Oct 15 (Reuters) - Skydance's CNN, the Financial Times, Axios and other publishers joined Google's AI news program to license their content for generative AI features and explore ways to drive audience engagement.
The search-engine giant said on Thursday that the program, which started as a pilot last year with partners like The Washington Post, now includes more than 400 publications globally.
The deal marks CNN's first partnership since Paramount Skydance completed its acquisition of Warner Bros
Discovery, as CEO David Ellison seeks to position the combined company as a technology-driven media business.
As part of these agreements, publishers will provide enhanced content rights, allowing Google to develop new AI features, while Google will pay participating news organizations for their content. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Google's innovation with generative AI has changed how people discover information and content, and now those tools will help us explore new ways to discover and engage audiences," said Sam Felix, CNN's senior vice president of strategic partnerships and business development.
Google said the AI features will come with clear attribution and direct links, helping readers to connect with the sources they value.
The announcement comes at a time when publishers are stepping up legal efforts to prevent AI companies from using their content without permission to train large language models.
News publishers are also grappling with declining referral traffic as search engines roll out AI-generated answers that allow users to consume information without clicking through to websites.
CNN said the deal is in line with its strategy to protect its intellectual property, adding that it has multiple commercial partnerships and ongoing discussions with other industry players.
The network operates television, streaming and digital news services worldwide, including CNN International and CNN Originals, as well as a direct-to-consumer subscription service and CNN Newsource.
(Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese and Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore and Anil D'Silva)
